Renesas Electronics & Altium: Streamlining PCB Design

Renesas Electronics, a global leader in semiconductor solutions, has announced a collaboration with Altium, LLC, a prominent software company based in San Diego, California. The partnership aims to standardize the development of printed circuit board (PCB) designs using Altium 365, a cloud-based platform.

Renesas has been using multiple PCB design tools across its organization, partly due to the integration of software from different companies it acquired in recent years. By integrating components from various product groups into what they call "Successful Product Combinations," Renesas seeks to simplify PCB design and reduce complexity. This move will improve system cost structure, expedite product launches, and ultimately benefit the electronic component industry.

The "Successful Product Combinations" offered by Renesas are pre-validated solutions that combine embedded processing, analog, power, and connectivity products. This comprehensive platform empowers customers to bring their design ideas to life, shorten development cycles, and minimize market risks. Renesas has already introduced over 400 "Successful Product Combinations," catering to diverse customer needs and markets.

Altium 365, an ideal cloud-based PCB design platform, enables seamless collaboration among stakeholders while ensuring the security of intellectual property and version control. Users can conveniently organize designs, libraries, and participants in one location and easily share design links for real-time collaboration. Renesas plans to make its entire ECAD library available on the Altium Public Vault, allowing customers to access Renesas components directly through the Altium library. This integration streamlines the design process and reduces time to market.

Chris Allexandre, Senior Vice President, CSMO, Global Sales, and Marketing at Renesas Electronics, expressed the company's commitment to digital transformation and simplifying customer design workflows. Allexandre emphasized the importance of ECAD tool migration as a significant step in their development process. Renesas looks forward to establishing a strong and enduring strategic relationship with Altium.

Furthermore, Renesas will continue to provide comprehensive support for customers using ECAD design platforms other than Altium. They will also offer ECAD libraries for other tools based on customer requirements. Renesas aims to strengthen its collaboration with Altium and employ multiple strategies to enhance its market position. This partnership represents the first step towards unifying ECAD tools and delivering improved services for the electronic components industry and the broader industry.